Birding in the Texas Panhandle

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Time Flies

Time sure gets away from me. I’ve not published anything in a month. I have been birding, just not as much as usual, lots of things vying for my time. Some of the them I wish I could just skip, work and mowing spring to mind. Others are things I should have been doing all along, but have been slack about and now am trying to make some of it up before it’s too late.

So, here’s a some of the summer birds I’ve seen around the panhandle the last month.

Common Yellowthroat. These little birds make an amazingly loud sound that rings throughout the canyon. There are several at Spring Canyon this year.

Painted Bunting

Eastern Kingbird

Mississippi Kite

Northern Mockingbird. This is a display behavior called Skylarking–quite entertaining to watch–involves launching itself into the air and singing loudly and floating back down to the perch.

Scissor-tailed Flycatcher. Lots of these guys around every year.

Yellow-billed Cuckoo. Not uncommon, but only see them once or twice a year. They are quite shy.

Snowy Plover. All alone in the parking lot at Spring Canyon.

Great Blue Herons building a nest.

These last 3 are unusual for summer in the Panhandle

Bald Eagle. I haven’t seen a Bald Eagle since early May. This one really caught me off guard.

Cooper’s Hawk. I could be wrong, I often am, but the bird was making this sound (the one marked “Near Nest”,) which is pretty distinctive. Usually a winter bird here.

Common Merganser. Lone bird on the large pond at Spring Canyon. He’s been there for the last 2 months. Not sure why he stuck around. Doesn’t seem to be hurt.